Kevin Costner breaks his silence on the death of the “Yellowstone” character

Kevin Costner has spoken out about the death of John Dutton.

The 69-year-old Oscar winner broke his silence after his “Yellowstone” character was killed off in the Season 5, Part 2 premiere, which aired Sunday night.

“Well, I’ll be completely honest. I didn’t know it actually aired last night,” Costner said on SiriusXM’s “The Michael Smerconish Program” on Monday.

“This is a moment I swear to God. I swear to God,” he continued. “I mean, I saw ads with my face everywhere and thought, ‘Man, I’m not in that.’ I’m not in this season. But I didn’t know it was yesterday. Someone said, ‘It played last night?’ And I said, ‘Hmm, okay.’ So no, I actually just found out this morning.”

At the beginning of the episode, John Dutton is found dead from a gunshot wound. It is initially assumed that his death was a suicide.

However, it later emerges that John was murdered in a conspiracy orchestrated by lawyer Sarah Atwood (Dawn Olivieri), who is sleeping with Jamie Dutton (Wes Bentley).

Costner – who confirmed his exit from the series after filming only the first half of season five – said in Monday’s interview that he doesn’t know how the series will handle his character’s fate.

“I heard what it was, but no, these are smart people,” he said. “Whatever they do, they’ll find out. But yeah, I came up with two possible endings back when it wasn’t going to take as long as it actually did.”

Asked what he thought of John’s death, Costner said: “I didn’t see it. I heard it was suicide. That’s why I don’t want to rush to see it.”

“They’re pretty smart people. Maybe it’s a diversionary tactic,” Costner added. “They are very good. They’ll figure it out.”

Costner also addressed claims that he left “Yellowstone” for his new Western film series “Horizon.”

“I didn’t really have to leave anything behind. There were gaps,” he explained. “There were contractual things that allowed both things to be done, but since both things were contractual you had to make room for the other thing. There was space, but they had a hard time keeping to their schedule. It was just too difficult for her.”

He continued: “The time was there, what happened, you can deal with it.” But I didn’t leave. I didn’t leave the show. OK? I had signed a contract for all three. There was a contract for all three. And within about eight months, two more different types of contracts were negotiated. Not at my request, but at her request to try things.

“I accommodated them on the two additional things that changed – things change – and finally when they wanted to change it a third time because I had to fulfill my commitments, there were 300 people waiting for me and I couldn’t help them anymore ” Costner continued. “I just couldn’t help them. But I didn’t leave the show. There was no…you know, everyone has to fulfill their obligations. And it doesn’t matter what industry you’re in.”

In May 2023, it was announced that Costner would not be returning to Yellowstone after Season 5, Part 1.

That same month, it was announced that the series would end with the fifth season, leading to speculation that the series would no longer move forward without Costner.

The Dances With Wolves star later told Deadline that the Paramount Network show was “first” on his list of priorities, despite series creator Taylor Sheridan Costner suggesting he leave the show to join both The Horizon. Acting in films as well as directing.

Costner also insisted that speculation about what was going on behind the scenes, including an alleged feud with Sheridan, 54, was “not true.”

In June, Costner officially confirmed that he was done with the show.

“I think of Yellowstone, this beloved series that I love and that I know you love. “I just realized that I can’t continue in Season 5 or in the future,” he said in an Instagram video.

“I loved it and I know you did. I just wanted to let you know that I’m not coming back,” he added.

Viewers were upset with how the show handled Costner’s exit in the Season 5, Part 2 premiere. They criticized Sheridan on social media, arguing that Costner’s character deserved a better ending.